CREATIVE CITY

The torch has been passed, and the 2018 Haile Fellows are digging in: Nicole Armstrong is developing Queen City Certified, a business certification system focused on gender equity, and Elisa Hoffman is creating School Board School, training that provides potential school board officials with the skills, experience, and mindset to be effective in that role.

We talk about what it means to manage a “streaming” project, learning from each other’s type-A tendencies, and what happens after the fellowship.

I also had some advice based on my experience as a 2017 Fellow, including:

What to do (and what to definitely NOT do)

Shipping when it hits B-

My most meaningful pivot

Incorrect assumptions I made

The fellowship year timeline

Staying on track while maintaining life balance

The one thing I recommend doing ASAP

Want to get involved? Get in touch with Nicole and Elisa via People’s Liberty (hello@peoplesliberty.org), or get in touch with me at hello@tethercincinnati.com.

Photographer extraordinaire Claudia Hershner operates as a commercial photographer, focusing on product, with many a passion project taking place in her Newport studio. Photography marries all the artistic elements she loves and the immediacy of photography is also particularly gratifying for Hershner. Her love of collaboration with other artists and the creative process of producing a shoot led to her involvement with two separate shoots for the upcoming Tether Sourcebook: Medicine Dance and Astro Enigma. Learn how she “paints” on and with the camera, the dance photographers themselves actually do behind the lens, the many uses of crystals, and how she incorporates her fine art background into digital photography.

For this special series, I’m talking to some of the talented folks who created photo shoots for the Tether Sourcebook about their inspiration, process, and industry insights.

Visual artist and graphic designer Janet Creekmore has loved photography for a long time—she even managed a photo studio. She wanted to do a food shoot that presented a challenge, and serendipitously met photographer Marlene Rounds, who connected with food stylist Jeffrey Martin. Learn how they recruited a cast of surprisingly cooperative “real people,” how their favorite shot came together on the fly, and what happened to the food once the photos were taken (hint: they ate it).

For this special series, I’m talking to some of the talented folks who created photo shoots for the Tether Sourcebook about their inspiration, process, and industry insights.

Makeup Artist and Educator Stefani Carol had a brilliant idea for the Tether Sourcebook: an underwater beauty shoot. She connected with Photographer Tina Gutierrez to help execute the concept, and they—along with an extensive team—created beautifully haunting images. Listen in and learn how!

Cincinnati born-and-raised Creative Director Joi Sears is a creative’s creative: she’s done everything from dance and spoken word to photography and theater, earning a BFA in Acting before shifting her focus to combining the arts and social change through entrepreneurship. We talk about her ethical fashion line Amsterdamage, her sustainable pop-up shop The Green Store, and why she was banned from Europe by the Dutch government(!).

We also discuss:

- Her goal of traveling 30 cities outside the US by her 30th birthday, including places in Brazil, Haiti, an Ghana before winding up in Amsterdam.

- The bold mouse and the poetry performance that changed the course of her life.

- Her top three tips for zero-waste newbies (hint: cut back on plastic, especially single-use plastic products like water bottles and straws).

- Why she wanted The Green Store to be more than a place to shop.

- What she discovered researching sustainability and shopping habits of millennials.

- Her dream of finding a permanent location for The Green Store and how it could be replicated and adapted to communities in cities around the world (attention funders and investors!).

Fashion connoisseur Tony Tiemeyer (evolutionfashionstudio.com) opened his first vintage clothing store in 1984, and soon after started carrying the work of then up-and-coming designers like Todd Oldham and Donna Karan. After running several successful designer shops and managing high-end retail, he decided to take on a new challenge: e-commerce. We talk about how he started Evolution Fashion Studio, why he likes to stay incognito, and how he wound up dressing Cookie Lyon in Dior.

Jill Goulait started making jewelry as a hobby after taking a simple soldering class, and what began as a diversion turned into a full-fledged occupation. The simple, minimalist designs that distinguish Circle Circle Jewelry (circlecirclejewelry.com) are inspired by deconstructing shapes down to their most basic form. We discuss how and why she changed the name of her business, how she found the perfect Production Assistant, and why it’s important to learn from everything you try.

We also discuss:

Going through the vigorous First Batch (firstbatch.org) accelerator program

Why etsy makes a great testing ground for everything from product design to marketing

What a difference straightforward descriptions, on-figure photos, and good customer service makes

Kick Lee landed in music production by sheer accident, after studying graphic design and discovering he wasn’t made for the corporate world. He grew up listening to music and has since become a fan of a number of genres, from bluegrass and country to hip-hop and EDM. We talk about his process for creating tracks from scratch, how music licensing works, and why he decided to make music his career (spoiler: it was when he got a $10K check for one gig!).

We also discuss:

His experience at Full Sail University and why it was one of the best decisions he made.

Being a black man with diverse tastes and talents, and the content that inspires him